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Lebanon prepares for a second offshore oil and gas licensing round

The Lebanese government is considering developing new offshore energy blocks, and has asked the Lebanese Petroleum Administration (LPA) to start preparing for a second round, whose timeline has not been given so far.



The first tender of this kind suffered delays but Lebanon finally signed contracts with a Total-led consortium (Total 40%, Eni 40%, Novatek 20%) covering Blocks 4 and 9 located offshore Lebanon, in the eastern part of the Mediterranean Sea, in February 2018.



Lebanon is estimated to hold at least 2,700 bcm of gas and 750 mbl of oil in its territorial waters and is looking forward to developing a domestic oil and gas industry in the wake of the recent moves in Cyprus, Egypt and Israel. Three of the five blocks included in the licensing round (1, 4, 8, 9 and 10) are located near Israeli maritime borders, where large gas fields have been discovered since 2009.